Monthly News – September 8, 2025

I am delighted to serve as the new President of the Thumb Butte Quilters Guild. Since the baton was passed to me by our multi-talented Coco, I knew I would have a tough act to follow.

A special thanks goes out to Shirlee Smith, a very talented TBQG member who shared her amazing quilts with us last month in August.  What a wonderful beginning to our 2025-2026 year.

I want to extend my gratitude to those who have volunteered for Executive positions two years in a row: Deb Johnson, Vice President, and Dana Swain, Secretary. I also warmly welcome our new Executive Committee members: Judith Dobke, Treasurer, and Jeanne Corrigan, Co-Secretary.

Of course, our committee leadership extends far beyond these positions:

• Community Service: Sheryl Goddard (1st year as Chair) and Kristine White (2nd year as Co-Chair) will be leading our Handmade Hugs program.
• Membership/Hospitality: Continuing their dedicated service are Dawnell Muecke, Alicia Czuzak, and Shelli Leffert.
• Ways and Means: We are excited to welcome new volunteers Gerry Carr, Carol Grimes, and Lydia Figueroa, who will focus on fundraising in this non–Quilt Show year.
• Web Team: Carol Wright and Yvonne Blitch, who have given many years of service, keep our website current, maintain our history, and send out reminders and communications.
• Workshops: Kathleen Bond has worked tirelessly for many years to ensure affordable, high-quality workshops are available for our members (and sometimes neighboring guilds). Workshops remain only $35—an incredible value. I encourage everyone to take advantage of these opportunities.

How do we begin to thank those who give of themselves so freely? Sometimes a simple hello and thank you go a long way. I truly believe in the power of “Paying It Forward.” And giving generously of your time to make this a fabulous Guild.

As the year progresses, I will be highlighting the many positions that keep Thumb Butte Quilters Guild running smoothly. This month, I’d like to shine a light on our Company Store.

Company Store.

The Company Store is a wonderful example of teamwork behind the scenes. A dedicated group of volunteers works together to provide members with an affordable shopping experience.

All items—fabrics, notions, and more—are donated by members and friends who no longer need them or whose “stash” has simply grown too large. (Please remember that donations must be clean and stored in a clean environment before they are given to the store.)

Donated items are sorted by color, theme, or uniqueness, then priced and stored. Some items are passed along to the Marketplace to be crafted into items for sale, while others go to Handmade Hugs to become burp cloths, receiving blankets, or lap quilts.  Also, items are contributed to Birthday Raffle, Quilt Retreat and small Quilt Auction.  Most, however, are offered directly to our members at drastically reduced prices, helping us all enhance our God-given talents in quilting, sewing, and crafting.

It starts a day or two before our meeting.  Vehicles are loaded up from storage into vehicles in preparation for our meeting. Around 8:15-8:30 a.m. on Guild meeting mornings the truck, trailer, and SUV’s pull into the Elks parking lot. The Company Store team is usually among the first to arrive. They unload boxes, organize items, and set up displays to make shopping enjoyable for everyone. Lending a hand unloading would be most appreciated, one simple way is to carry a box to the back tables as you sign in—it makes setup much quicker and allows shopping to begin sooner! At the end of the meeting, if you could help take a box or two back to the vehicles parked out front, it would be greatly appreciated too.  Many hands make light work!

Special thanks to Our Company Store volunteers

• Pam Jones – Since 1999 Pam has volunteered with company store, minus a few years as Newcomers Lead, Vice President 2000-2001.
• Carol Brownlow – over many years
• Lorraine Owens – Has volunteered about 10 years in Company Store, Lorraine has also been a Lady in Waiting and always volunteered in many capacities.
• Cathy Day – serving since 2018, a major role player in Marketplace at the Quilt Show and now in her 2nd year at volunteering in the store
• Pat Noel –Has been hauling boxes in her truck for at least 5 years, volunteered in Ways and Means for 1 years, Show and Tell for 2 years and was Chair for Quilt show in 2025.

If you would like to join this group of amazing volunteers—or if you’d like to be mentored for a role in 2026–2027—please contact one of the committee members or let me know directly.

Let’s make this a year of community service, creativity, and connection.

Happy sewing—and thank you for giving a part of yourself to others!

Warmly,
Jamie Davis, President